Vibratory therapeutic treatment applicator



Sept. 11, 1962 D. c. sTuBBs 3,053,250

VIBRATORY THERAPEUTIC TREATMENT APPLIcAToR Filed May 2, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Sept. 11, 1962 D. c. sTuBBs VIBRATORY THERAPEUTIC TREATMNT APPLIcAToR 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 2, 1961 3,053,250 VIBRATORY THERAPEUTIC TREATMENT APPLICATOR Doris C. Stubbs, P.0. Box 768, Glendale, Calif. Filed May 2, 1961, Ser. No. 107,110

7 Claims. (Cl. 128-41) i This invention relates to therapeutic devices and more particularly to an improved device for simultaneously applying vibratory treatment to the spinal column and to the abdominal area of a patient. An object of the invention is to provide an organized apparatus comprising a plurality of electro-mechanical vibration producing devices and electric-al connections therefor together With supporting means for said devices adapted to place them in operative relation to the portions of the body of the patient to be treated.

Another object of the invention is to provide a supporting means of the above Character which is in the form of a jacket-like garment component to be worn by the patient and in which the said plurality of devices are removably contained in pockets on the inner face of the garment component whereby the electrical devices may be transferred to clean garment components to 'be worn by successive patients and whereby the g-arment components after having been usedV may be separated from the electrical devices for laundering and sterilizing.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a therapeutic apparatus in which the foregoing objects are realized in practice, which is economical to manufacture, and which is reliable for its intended purpose.

With the foregoing objects in view together with such additional objects and advantages as may subsequently appear, the invention resides in the parts and in the construction, combination and arr-angement of parts described, by Way of example, in the following specificationV of a presently preferred embodiment of the invention, reference being had to the accompanying drawings which form a part of said specification and in which drawings:

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of the jacket component of a therapeutic apparatus embodying the invention, the location of certain of the vibration producing devices being indicatedy in dotted lines,

FIG. 2 is a rear perspective view of the jacketlike garment shown in FIG. 1,

FIG. 3 is an enlarged Scale, tr-ansverse, sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of FIG. 1,

FIG. 4 is a front elevational view of the jacket as opened out,

PIG. 5 is a rear elevational view of the opened' jacket,

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary, perspective view of the opening through which the vibration components of the apparatus are installed and removed,

"FIG. 7 is a side elevational view of the electrical component of the apparatus and` FIG. 8 is an enlarged' scale, edge elevational view, partly in section, of one of these electro-magnetic vibration components as viewed from the line 8 -8 of FIG. 7.

Referring to the drawings, 'the illustrated embodiment of the invention comprises a garment component 1 and an electromagnetic vibration producing component 2. The garment component 1 comprises (in addition to securing another means presently to be described) a piece of fabric constituting a back portion '3, a right hand side portion 4 joined to the edge of the back portion by a side seam 5 and adapted to extend across the abdomen of the wearer, and a left hand side portion 6 joined to the opposite side edge of the lback portion 3 by a side seam 7 and thence extending to a distal end adapted to be overlaying or overlapped by the distal end of the right hand side porton 6 as best shown in FIGS. l and 3. The garment back portion 3 at the upper end thereof terminates in tes Patent narrowed right and left hand ends 8 and 9 which are connected to the ends of shoulder straps 10 and 11 and the opposite ends of said shoulder straps are sewed to the inner faces of the back and side portions at the region of the upper ends of the respective side seams 5 and 7. The upper edge of the back portion 3 is curved downwardly at the midlength thereof and is reinforced and finished by a hem 13 and the side edges thereof above the side seams 5 and 7 are finished and reinforced by hemmed edges 14 and 15. The lower edges of the back and side portions are disposed slightly below the hip line of the user and are finished and reinforced by a continuous hem 16. The distal ends of the side portions 4 and 6 are also hemmed as at 4' and 6'.

The body encircling portion of the garment component comprising the lower part of the back portion 3 and the right and left hand side portions 4 and 6 is given a slight downwardly flaring shape, when closed about the user, by a series of vertically extending pleats formed in the lower portion of the back portion 3 and comprising a centrally disposed double pleat 17 formed by line of stitching 18 and having the folds 19, 19 thereof secured to the inner face of the fabric byV lines of stitching 20, 20 converging upwardly and right and` left hand single pleats 21, 21 each formed |by a first row of stitching 22 and having the fold thereof secured to the inner face of the fabric by a stitching 23. The means for securing the garment component about the torso of the user comprises a series of three horizontally extending laterally spaced belts 24 secured to the 'outer face of the right hand side portion 4- in parallel spaced relation by stitching 25, the distal ends 26 of said belt portions extending beyond the distal end of the garment side portion 4. Secured to the outer face of the left hand side portion 6 by stitching is a series of three short belt ends 27 which are complementary to the belts 24 and which extend from the side seam 7 toward the distal end of the side portions 6 but terminate in buckles 28 disposed inwardly of said distal end of the side portion 6; said buckles being engageable with the respective belt ends 26 to detachably secure the 'garment about the waist of the user as best shown in FIG. 3. Due to this positioning of the buckles, the side portions 4 and 6 will be disposed in overlapping relation as will be seen in FIGS. 1 and 3.

The electro-mechanical, vibration producing component 2 comprises a4 group of three identical electro-magnet devices of known construction 29, 30 and 31 connected, in series relation by a suitable two-Wire conductor 32 having a manually operable switch 33 and a plug, 34- affording connection with a source of alternating current, preferably of volts. Each of said electro-magnetic devices is similar to that shown in FIG. 8 which comprises a fiat circular metal container C closed by a tightly fitting cover C'; said container component being providedwitha paramagnetic pole piece P of circular configuration and of less thickness than the depth of the container fixed to the inner face thereof in coaxial relation to the axial line of said circular container. Loosely contained in said container is a rigid, flat, solenoid coil S which also loosely surrounds the pole piece, the thickness of the coil being such that the play between it and the opposite side Walls of the container in the axial line thereof is a small fraction of an inch and the wire size and number of turns in the coil being so calculated as not to cause overheating of the winding. Obviously, with such construction, upon imposing alternating current on this coil, it 'will reciprocate between the walls of the container and cover guided by the pole piece with resultant production of pronounced vibration in the axial lines of these devices. Suita'ble openings bordered by grommets G are provided in the side wall of the container for the leads which connect the 3 vibrator coils with each other and with a power source. As previously mentioned these devices are known in the therapeutic art and no claim is here made to them per se.

As shown in FIG. 7, these devices are disposed in an L-shaped configuration with the horizontal leg thereof being somewhat longer than the Vertical leg. The means for detachably mounting said electro-mechanical component on the garment component comprises a two-ply fabric cover 35 of the same general outline as the electro-magnetic component 2 which is stitched around its edges as at 36 to the inner face of the garment component with the vertically extending portion disposed centrally of the back portion 3, thereby positioning the vibration producing units 30 and '31 over the lower and upper portions of the spine of the patient and the horizontal portion or leg thereof extending across the right hand side wall portion 4 to position the unit 29 over the abdominal area of the patient.

Preferably, the inner faces of the cover 35 are provided with circular cushioning pads 37, 38 and 39 disposed between the plies thereof opposite the portions of the cover in which the units 29, 30 and 31 are contained.

The stitching 36 is interrupted at 40 sufficiently to pro- Vide a space for the passage of the conductor 32, as well as of the switch 33 and plug 34 therethrough incident to the installation or removal of the electrical component and this stitching is further interrupted along the lower horizontal edge thereof midway between the pads 37 and 38 sufliciently to form an opening 41 for the passage of the units 29, 30 and 31 therethrough. Snap fasteners 42 and 43 affording detachable connection between the cover 35 and the back portion of the garment serve to retain the unit 31 overlaid by the pad 39. Similar snap fasteners 44 and 45 correspondingly retain the unit 30 beneath the pad 38 at the angle of the L formed by the cover and similar snap fasteners 46 and 47 retain the units 29 beneath the pad 37. A final snap fastener 48 serves to detachably close the opening 41. To remove the electrical component from the garment component all of the snap fasteners are disengaged and the unit is removed through the opening 41, the conductor cord, switch and plug following through the opening 40. Installation of the components is of course through the opening 41, the cord, switch and plug being first entered through the opening 41 and thence out through the opening 40 and after the component is installed the snap fastener are connected to complete the installation.

Thus there has been provided a therapeutic apparatus which can be positioned on a patient to provide vibration treatment over the spine and abdomen, and in which the fabric component can be separated from the electrical component so that the fabric component can 'be laundered and a fresh fabric component supplied for the use of the electrical component with another patient. While in the foregoing specifications there has been disclosed a presently preferred embodiment of the invention, the invention is not to be deemed to 'be limited to the precise details of construction thus disclosed by way of example and it will be understood that the invention includes as well all such changes and modifications in the parts and in the construction, combination and arrangement of parts as shall come within the purview of the appended claims,

I claim:

'1. A therapeutic device comprising a jacket-like garment component adapted to be suspended from the shoulders and to be secured about the torso of a patient and having a plurality of interconnected pockets formed therein, and a plurality of electro-magnetic vibration imparting devices removably mounted one each in each of said pockets and including a conductor means attachable to a source of alternating current and connected to lall of said devices, said devices being operative upon electrical energization thereof to simultaneously apply vibratory treatment to a plurality of areas of the torso of the patient.

2. A therapeutic device as claimed in claim 1 in which said vibration imparting means compriscs a plurality of disc-like housings each having at least one substantially fiat side each enclosing a loosely mounted electro-magnetic means responsive to alternating current and effective to impart vibrations in a direction normal to the said fiat side surface of said housing.

3. A therapeutic device as claimed in claim l in which said pockets are provided with a single opening through which said vibration producing devices are inserted and removed and in which said containing means and said garment component are provided with interengaging detachable fastening means effective to form said pockets for said vibration producing devices.

4. A therapeutic device comprising a supporting means comprising a fabric body member having means for securing it about the body of a patient and other means for suspending it from the Shoulders of the patient, means on the inner face of said body member for supporting a vibration producing means, and an electro-magnetic vibration producing means responsive to alternating current carried by said supporting means and comprising a first vibrator disposed between the Shoulders of the patient, a second vibrator disposed over the lower spinal region of the patient and a third vibrator disposed over the abdomen of the patient, and conductor means adapted to connect said vibrators with a source of alternating current.

5. A therapeutic device as claimed in claim 4 in which each of said vibrators comprises a disk-like housing enclosing electro-magnetic means responsive to alternating current and operative to produce vibrations in a direction parallel to the axial line of said housing.

6. A therapeutic device as claimed in claim 5 in which said body member is provided with a plurality of pockets in each of which one each of said vibrators is contained.

7. A therapeutic device as claimed in clairn 6 in which said pockets are interconnected with a single opening through which said vibration producing means is inserted and removed and in which said body member and said supporting means are provided with a series of detachable fastening devices operative to form said supporting means into said pockets.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Clement June 17, 1924 Chandler Jan. 20, 1959 

